1. Field of the Invention
The present general inventive concept relates to an image forming apparatus to which an external memory device can be connected. More particularly, the present general inventive concept relates to an image forming apparatus having a printing log management function and a method thereof, which stores in a printing log when a printing is performed so that rapid and easy printing is enabled when a once-printed file is printed thereafter.
2. Description of the Related Art
An image forming apparatus such as a printer, a multi-function office machine including a printer function, and a photograph printer is usually provided with a computer as a host device. Once the image data are written through a document writer of a computer or image data are inputted through a scanner, the image data are emulated into language suitable for the image forming apparatus, and then transmitted to the image forming apparatus. As a result, an image corresponding to the transmitted image data is printed by the image forming apparatus.
With the introduction of a new storage medium such as a mobile memory card using flash memory technology, an image forming apparatus is also required to read and print image data directly from the mobile memory card.
The mobile memory card can be connected to a digital camera to record image data, or used as a mobile storage medium for the image data stored in the computer. Once the image data are written on these new kinds of storage medium such as a mobile memory card, the data are not necessarily stored in the computer and then transmitted to the printer to be printed. In other words, the mobile memory card can be directly connected to the printer, multi-function office machine or photo printer for the printing of written image data. Therefore, an ‘external memory device’ hereinafter will refer to such a memory card, and a mobile memory card can be one example of the external memory device.
In a conventional way, a user has to select an image data file corresponding to the image of the external memory device through an indicating device which is attached to the connected printer. When the user selects an image data file, the printer prints the image corresponding to the selected image data file. For the user to select an image data file, the image forming apparatus, such as a printer, indicates information of the files which is read from the external memory device.
A problem arises from the limited capacity of the indicating device of the image forming apparatus. For example, the indicating device of a general image forming apparatus is not large enough to display file information as monitors of computers do. In contrast, the new type of storage medium, such as a mobile memory card, has now been developed to have a high capacity in accordance with the improved integration technology of flash memory, and therefore, it now can store up to several tens of data files at once. A general image forming apparatus displays one data file usually for 3 to 5 seconds. This means that the user has to wait approximately three to six minutes to view 50 files, and is also required to manipulate the indicating device approximately 50 times. A group of files may be displayed at once. For example, one to five files can be displayed at the same time. However, this also causes an inconvenience because the user has to perform many searches in order to find a desired file.